Category: Linux

I’m not sure if this is good form or not, but I’ve made some aliases to take me to some frequently used folders on my hard drive and my Dropbox. Additionally, an alias to the handy dandy Dropbox python script. Also added the human readable switch to ll.

Since I put all of 15 minutes into tricking out my .bashrc file with aliases, I figured it’d be a good idea to back it up to my Dropbox. But then I wondered, what if the .bashrc file in my home directory was instead a symlink to the backup in my Dropbox? That way, any change would automatically be backed up, and whats more, I can use that same .bashrc file on multiple machines, and I’d have all my aliases with me (like in my CentOS 6.5 virtual machine)!

So thats what I did.

I have my CentOS 7 installation on a physical hard drive, and a CentOS 6.5 installation in a virtual machine. Both have a user ‘travnewmatic’. Both travnewmatic home folders have .bashrc symlinks to the real .bashrc file in my Dropbox.

The only issue I’ve anticipated is that an alias that works on one machine might not work on another machine. The majority of my aliases change to a particular folder, so if that folder didn’t exist or the path was different, then the alias would not work.

…was no work out of the box. Ethernet was sufficient since my computer is located near the router. My D-Link DWA-1320 wireless PCI card has been a champ ever since I’ve owned it. Its handled everything from XP, to Win7, to OS X SL, multiple versions of Ubuntu and Debian.. but oddly enough was not ready out of the box with CentOS. I was determined, did a bit of Googling and viola! Found the driver in a package in the ELRepo.org repository. Installed the ‘kmod-ath5k’ package, restarted, and wireless worked!

So I’ve been using CentOS 7 as my desktop OS for a few days now. Made significant headway in the edX Linux intro course, and things are going very very well. Since the course uses CentOS 6.5, I’ve created a virtual machine (in virtual box) to fiddle with and to do the activities in. However, CentOS 7 is current and of course I couldn’t see any reason not to use the latest and greatest for my own self.

Why do I like it?

No stability issues like I was having under Debian. Granted, I’m not using the Nvidia drivers I was using on the Debian install so that may have something to do with it. Zero freezes, can’t complain.

Opportunity to learn something new, its an industry standard. Good prep for the RHEL cert maybe?

I am reporting back in on my experience using Cyanogenmod (specifically a recent Cyanogenmod 10.2 Nightly).

I love it.

I’m actually using it as a hotspot to write this post. Cyanogenmod-ified Android is an absolute joy to use. This is remarkable considering that I’m running the most current version of Android on a device that came out in 2011.

Sometimes CM crashes and reboots itself, but its no big deal. It recovers quickly enough.

What has been frustrating is GPS lock.

I used Maps on the way to work today and yesterday, and was pleased that it maintained lock during the ~30 min commutes. This is the exception rather than the rule.

Actually, this has been my main motivator to want to get a new phone (Nexus 5 is just around the corner). The whole experience has been great, everything has been working as it should.. except for GPS (until just recently, if it is indeed fixed). Its been like a thorn in my side.. that one feature not working as it should.. and an important one at that. Fortunately for me, it has worked well enough (plus I’m a halfway decent orienteer), that I manage fairly well with its hopefully previously imprecise tracking. If anyone has any feedback about GPS performance in CM on the i777 I’d be curious to hear it.

So, all in all, I’ve been very pleased with how Cyanogenmod has integrated into my life. So much so, that I got my best bud to get it on his Galaxy S4 (he used to have an old droid that he had put CM on a long time ago, but had put it back to stock. Got the S4, I hassled him about putting CM on it, and has been happy as a clam ever since), the afore-mentioned girlfriends Galaxy Note 2, and even my cousins Kindle Fire.

I wasn’t sure where the i777 was in its lifespan with regard to support by CM, but I’m happy to see that development is continuing to truck along. I’m proud to be part of the CM fold, and when my girlfriend tells me that she updated to the latest nightly using CyanDelta.. I get this big stupid grin on my face.

Thank you to everyone who has made this experience possible! If you’re in Dallas area I’ll buy you a beer!